No. 19-7717October Term 2019Decided Apr 20, 2020
Wilson v. Inch
The Supreme Court did not resolve Wilson's sentencing and jurisdiction arguments; it left the lower-court result in place by declining review.
Case status
- Current stage
- Decided
- Latest event
- Decision released Apr 20, 2020
- What it's about
A petition has been filed asking the Supreme Court to review a lower court decision, along with a request to proceed without paying standard filing fees.
Question presented
1. Whether the Second District Court of Appeal in and for the State of Florida violated the Writ of Habeas Corpus statute(s) with a manifest injustice? Because the court refused to address the merits of a illegal sentence? 2. In a dynamic aspect regarding whether the court erred in the right? Does judicial misconduct and its application create manifest injustice regarding void of jurisdiction and motion for relief from judgment pursuant to Rule 1.540(b)? 3. Did the Second District Court of Appeal in and for the State of Florida violate a Writ of Habeas Corpus procedure/practice? In which the court failed to address the merits of the constitutional claim that the information was loss jurisdiction and as such the court was without jurisdiction and the judgment was void pursuant to Rule 1.540(b)?
- Case path
Supreme Court of Florida / Decision released Apr 20, 2020
- Area
Criminal Procedure
Briefing
What it's about
Tarvis Wilson asked the Supreme Court to review a Florida court's refusal to address his claims that his sentence was illegal and that the judgment was invalid because the trial court lacked legal power to act. The Supreme Court ended the case at the petition stage, meaning it declined review and did not decide those claims on the merits.
Impact
For Wilson, the Florida result stays in place. For example, people raising sentence challenges in Supreme Court petitions can see their cases end without any answer to the underlying legal questions.
What's next
Nothing further is scheduled in this Supreme Court docket. The lower-court decision remains in effect unless Wilson pursues some other path outside this completed case.
What was Wilson v. Inch about?
Wilson asked the justices to review Florida courts' refusal to address his claims that his sentence and judgment were invalid. He also asked to proceed without paying fees.
Who is affected by the outcome in Wilson v. Inch?
Wilson is affected most because the Florida result stays in place. Other petitioners can also see similar cases end without any Supreme Court answer on the underlying issues.
What happens next in Wilson v. Inch?
This Supreme Court docket is over. Any further effort would have to come through some other filing, not this completed case.
Decision
What the Court decided
The Supreme Court did not resolve Wilson's sentencing and jurisdiction arguments; it left the lower-court result in place by declining review.
Impact
For Wilson, the Florida result stays in place. For example, people raising sentence challenges in Supreme Court petitions can see their cases end without any answer to the underlying legal questions.
Not official Court text.
Timing
Decided April 20, 2020
The Court released its decision on April 20, 2020 without hearing oral argument.
Related cases
Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary materials plus reporting.
- Note
- Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Jul 25, 2026
- Method
- Methodology